Aaron Rodgers knew exactly what he was doing when this entire fiasco unfolded. He’d been planning it for a year. If the Green Bay Packers were so certain Jordan Love is their future? Fine. Let that future begin now. No more freebies from one of the best quarterbacks of all time. Rodgers wasn’t going to exit like his predecessor Brett Favre had, giving his best remaining years to an organization that was already looking beyond him.
He’ll do that somewhere he’s wanted. The Packers weren’t prepared for this. They had a plan in place. Ride Rodgers for another year or two, compete for a Super Bowl, and then hopefully hand the keys to Love. Now those plans are in tatters. Rodgers wants out and seems willing to stay at home as long as it takes. Green Bay intends to call his bluff, hoping the proximity of the regular season eventually convinces him to stop this nonsense.
Several insiders don’t think that is going to happen.
While head coach Matt Lafleur desperately wants the QB to return, it appears not everybody is overly broken up about the idea of Rodgers being gone. Matt Lombardo of Fansided got in touch with a well-connected former executive. He revealed that the QB has a mixed reputation behind the scenes. Plenty in the organization like and respect him, but it is hardly unanimous.
“The guy’s selfish,” a former NFL general manager tells FanSided. “Teammates don’t like him. Coaches don’t like him. It’s all about Aaron.
“They all deal with him, because he’s a superstar. He helps guys make money and put food on the table for their kids, and people respect him for that.”
“The longer this goes on, it shows how selfish Aaron really is,” the former GM says.
This speaks to the complicated situation at hand. While having Rodgers betters the odds of winning, at some point the headaches in dealing with his personality get overwhelming. That makes it easier for many in the organization to welcome the idea of finally turning the page on his time. Let the Love era begin. Even if doing so threatens to slam their Super Bowl window shut for the foreseeable future.
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Packers already trying to seize the moral high ground on Aaron Rodgers
That is evident from the public comments from team president Mark Murphy. First by saying this saga has “divided the fanbase” and then calling Rodgers a “complicated fella.” They’re doing everything they can to make clear they aren’t the problem here. They want the quarterback back. They were willing to offer him a pay raise. What else can they do? However, it isn’t really working.
Aaron Rodgers isn’t stupid. He’s played the media game far better to this point, keeping quiet for the most part. Essentially he is letting the Packers trip over themselves. By refusing to respond to their passive-aggressive prods, he’s making them look petty. While there are fans who blame the quarterback for this situation, there are plenty who continue to side with him.
Green Bay doesn’t have many avenues out of this.
Unless Rodgers suddenly changed his mind or they granted his wish of firing GM Brian Gutekunst? It feels like the eventual scenario is obvious. They will trade him. It won’t be now. Not with uncertainty as to what draft picks they’d get in return. However, by the trade deadline or next offseason? It looks more than plausible at this point. They better hope Love blossoms quickly. Otherwise, a lot of people are getting fired.